OVERVIEW:

Preserve Hudson Valley and three private citizens have filed a lawsuit with the NYS Supreme Court in Orange County. The Article 78 petition calls for the reversal of DEC Commissioner Joseph Martens' decision in which he named Kiryas Joel as lead agent for the 507-acre annexation SEQRA process.

The Village of Kiryas Joel Board of Trustees, Town Board of the Town of Monroe, and the individual petitioners on the 507 annexation petition are also named as respondents in the lawsuit.

Adding 507 acres to Kiryas Joel would expand the Village by nearly 75%, straining local resources and replacing hundreds of acres of wooded land with high-density housing complexes and 50,000 more people.

We believe the DEC's decision to allow Kiryas Joel to preside over the environmental review of this annexation is both arbitrary and capricious, due to the Village's egregious environmental record, numerous DEC and EPA violations, and their clear self-interest in passing the annexation. It is on this basis we request that the court overturn this decision.